Civil Engineer Education Overview and Career Guide

Civil engineers conceive and design infrastructure projects and systems in the public and private sectors, including roads, buildings, airports, tunnels, bridges and dams along with systems to improve the water supply or deal with and treat sewage. They also build, supervise and operate these complex systems.

A civil engineer may specialize as a construction engineer, geotechnical engineer, transportation engineer or structural engineer. They may focus specifically on designing projects, conducting research, or educating others in the field of civil engineering. In the public sector, they may take on an administrative or supervisory role as a city engineer, a public works director or city manager. In the private sector, they may supervise construction sites.

A Day in the Life of a Civil Engineer

Civil engineers may spend as much time working in the office as they do in the field. In the office, they may conceptualize new project plans or consult with an architect or other engineering professionals. Out in the field, they may actively oversee construction and verifying that building plans are carried out properly and safely.

Specific job duties can vary drastically depending on the type of work or project, but some of the most common responsibilities of civil engineers include:

Analyzing construction plans, survey reports, maps and other data

Considering construction costs for proposed construction plans

Considering government regulations and potential environmental hazards that could affect construction plans

Using design software to plan and design various infrastructure projects including transportation systems, buildings and bridges

Preparing cost estimates for various construction projects

Choosing building materials for specific projects

While civil engineers do a lot of work independently, they also collaborate with other engineering and construction professionals. And since much of their work is often publicly funded, they may also be required to submit bids or make presentations to the public at large.

Important Characteristics for Civil Engineers

Civil engineers must be very comfortable with mathematics and science. They use calculus, trigonometry, statistics and other advanced mathematics to perform their work analyzing, designing and troubleshooting engineering projects. They also depend on knowledge of physics and chemistry and other science-based subjects in their work.

They should have excellent decision-making skills, along with critical-thinking skills and the ability to consider projects from multiple perspectives. Obviously, civil engineers also need problem-solving skills so they can work through issues that arise. Lastly, civil engineers need good writing and speaking skills so they can communicate effectively and translate engineering and scientific concepts to their clients or members of the public.

Typical Steps for Becoming a Civil Engineer

Civil engineers make decisions that can affect thousands or even millions of people. Since civil engineers do such important work, they typically spend a lot of time pursuing higher education and honing their skills. Here are the usual steps needed for those who want to pursue a civil engineering career:

1) Earn a high school diploma. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that you need to earn a high school diploma before you can take the next steps toward becoming a civil engineer. It may be helpful to concentrate on mathematics and science subjects in high school to help prepare you for college courses.

If you know you are interested in this career early on, you can also consider attending an engineering summer camp during high school. These camps introduce young people to civil engineering courses and topics they may explore more later on.

2) Earn an undergraduate civil engineering degree. To become a civil engineer, you typically need a bachelor's degree. Schools may have slightly different ways to describe these degrees, but common ones include:

Bachelor of Science in Structural Engineering

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering

Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering Technology

Courses you can expect to take at civil engineering schools include math, statistics, engineering and fluid dynamics in addition to regular core curriculum. Outside of classroom learning, civil engineering programs may include some hands-on experience in laboratories or in the field.

If you plan to get a Professional Engineer (PE) license, you'll also want to make sure the civil engineering colleges you consider are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, or ABET.

3) Apply for a Professional Engineer (PE) license. Once you have earned an undergraduate degree from a school accredited by the ABET, you can apply for a Professional Engineer (PE) license. This license may not be required for entry-level positions but may become more important as you move up into management and leadership roles.

4) Qualify for additional certification. If you are interested in pursuing a particular area of civil engineering, you can earn a special certification through the American Society of Civil Engineers. This society makes it possible to specialize in important fields of civil engineering such as coastal engineering, water resources engineering, building security and sustainability.

Online Civil Engineering Degree, University of North Dakota, http://und.edu/academics/extended-learning/online-distance/degrees/civil-engineering/

Civil Engineer Skills

Below are the skills needed to be civil engineer according to their importance on the scale of 1 to 5 (1 being lowest and 5 being highest) and competency level on a scale of 1 to 7 (1 being lowest and 7 being highest).

Skill Name

Importance

Competence

Reading Comprehension

4

4.75

Critical Thinking

4

4.5

Complex Problem Solving

3.88

4.12

Systems Analysis

3.88

4.25

Operations Analysis

3.88

4.62

Civil Engineer Abilities

Below are the abilities needed to be civil engineer according to their importance on the scale of 1 to 5 (1 being lowest and 5 being highest) and competency level on a scale of 1 to 7 (1 being lowest and 7 being highest).

Ability Name

Importance

Competence

Deductive Reasoning

4

4.75

Inductive Reasoning

4

4.12

Oral Comprehension

4

5

Problem Sensitivity

4

4.88

Information Ordering

4

4

Civil Engineer Knowledge

Below are the knowledge areas needed to be civil engineer according to their importance on the scale of 1 to 5 (1 being lowest and 5 being highest) and competency level on a scale of 1 to 7 (1 being lowest and 7 being highest).

Knowledge Area

Importance

Competence

Engineering and Technology

4.61

6.3

Building and Construction

4.43

5.87

Mathematics

4.3

5.22

Design

4.22

5.7

English Language

4.05

4.95

Civil Engineer Work activities

Below are the work activities involved in being civil engineer according to their importance on the scale of 1 to 5 (1 being lowest and 5 being highest) and competency level on a scale of 1 to 7 (1 being lowest and 5 being highest).

Work Activity

Importance

Competence

Making Decisions and Solving Problems

4.41

5.55

Getting Information

4.35

4.96

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

4.18

5.23

Interacting With Computers

4.09

4.32

Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards

4.04

4.87

Civil Engineer Work styles

Below are the work styles involved in being civil engineer according to their importance on the scale of 1 to 5 (1 being lowest and 5 being highest).

Work Style

Importance

Integrity

4.87

Dependability

4.43

Attention to Detail

4.26

Initiative

4.13

Analytical Thinking

4.13

Metro Areas Sorted by Total Employment for Civil Engineer

Listed below are the 10 largest metro areas based on the total number of people employed in Civil Engineer jobs , as of 2017

Metro Area

Total Employment

Annual Mean Salary

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim

10,740

$107,330

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land

10,690

$113,580

San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward

7,670

$108,760

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell

7,070

$93,190

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue

6,320

$89,110

Denver-Aurora-Lakewood

5,790

$89,290

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington

5,340

$93,500

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach

4,860

$88,290

Detroit-Warren-Dearborn

4,840

$77,910

San Diego-Carlsbad

4,800

$92,760

Compare Total Employment & Salaries for Civil Engineers

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Most Popular Industries for Civil Engineer

These industries represent at least 1% of the total number of people employed in this occupation.

Industry

Total Employment

Percent

Annual Median Salary

Professional And Technical Services

140,330

55%

$74,680

Government

70,850

28%

$75,010

Construction

22,040

8%

$71,880

Office Services And Staffing

3,240

1%

$69,910

Education

2,920

1%

$59,860

Selected Schools for Civil Engineer

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We have some additional detailed pages at the state level for Civil Engineer.

Numbers in parentheses are counts of relevant campus-based schools in the state; online schools may also be available.